Flood clean up on the fourth?

July 5, 2011 at 2:28 AM CDT - Updated June 24 at 2:47 PM

MOREHOUSE, MO (KFVS) - Fireworks, family, friends, and flood clean up. Some flooding victims day the 4th of July is a time to sit back and relax, while others say they need to work right through the celebration.

"Even with all the flood and the damage, we are celebrating the 4th of July," said Morehouse flood victim Kelly Akers.

It sums it up perfectly for most of the people in Morehouse. They aren't letting flood damage get in the way of celebrating Independence Day.

"The kids are going to have fun shooting off fireworks," said Morehouse flood victim Shirley Gordon.

"We're going to have fun today," said Akers.

Debris has scattered the town for weeks since the flooding from people trying to clean out, and fix up their homes. But no cleaning this holiday.

"Today's the day we're just going to take a break," said Akers.

But not everyone is putting work on the back burner. Ricky Knuckles and his family own the post office building in Morehouse. They say they've been working to repair damage everyday since father's day, and the 4th of July is no exception.

"The damage is actually worse than we thought it was," said Knuckles.

Knuckles says he set a goal to finish the work by Tuesday July 5th, so they can turn the building back over to the government. He says it's important to the community.

"This is one institution left in town that won't close," said Knuckles.

Knuckles did take the morning to spend with his family, something he and the rest of the community agree on for the 4th of July.